Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-06-11
DESTITUTE IMMIGRANTS.
BAYARD ANSWERS SOME QUESTIONS
PUT BY MINISTER WEST

with Reference to the Character of Immi-
grafton Uncle Sam VIII weIcome-Tbe
Irish Crofters Assisted by the British
Government Not the Glass Desired-Na-
tional Capital Notes.
WASHINGTON CRY, June u-Secretary
Bayard's recent correspondents with MIR.
West, the British minister, on the subject of
assisted Irish emigration was made public
Thursday. The correspondence opens with
letter from Minister West to the secretary
of state, dated April %, which reads as fol-
lows:
SIR: Her majesty's government has instructed
| me to cable to ascertain whether under the exist
ing law Irish emgrants sent out at the public cost
| and who have friends in the United States able to
help and support them, will be allowed to land,
| and have the honor therefore to request you to
be good enough to enable me to reply.
To this Secretary Bayard, on May 2, re-
piled, and after acknowledging the receipt Of
the British minister's note of inquiry, quotes
the law on the subject, which relegates the
entire question to the officers charged with
| the duty of supervising immigration, and au-
| thorizes them to examine the condition of I'M
| migrants, and, if any such are un
| able to take care of themselves, and are
likely to become public charges, to refuse
them permission to land. The secretary says
| the law is explicit and that he can not there
| under give the minister any assurance in any
particular case or cases. He adds that the
United States welcomes all persons seeking a
new field Of labor who are desirable immi-
grants, but that class of people who ar,
| ton that they have friends in this country
| who will help them, and who are assisted &c
| emigrate by government agency be
cause they are likely to become a charge on
| their own country are not desirable, and theiI
expectation hither by a foreign government
| in order to get rid of the burden of their sup
| port could scarcely be regarded as a friendly
act or in harmony with existing laws.
| On May II Minister west in a note TO Tn,
secretary made the following inquiry:
| SIR: With reference to my note of the 18th ult
and to your reply of the eth instant, have TIN
| honor to inform you that her majesty govern
| ment intimate that the intending emigrants ar
| not paupers, but crofters whose passages ar
only partly paid from public funds, and that he
maiesty's government would be glad to know
whether this affects in any way the tenor of you
| above mentioned note.
Replying to this inquiry on May 20, tn
date of the last note that has passed on tn
subject; Secretary Bayard wrote briefly that
| "For the reasons stated in my note of I'll
inst, the department is unable to give any as
surance that any particular class of immi
| grants will lie permitted to land. The provi
| sions of the law look to the actual condition
of each person, and are impartial in thei
| operation"
| This correspondence, with Minister West
frank inquiries, and Secretary Bayard'
straightforward replies, attracts more thai
usual attention, and it is believed that thi
pressing question will receive early considera
| Lion in the p,,Xl congress